


Stay With Me

by thinkoutsidethebex



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Winter Soldier (Comics)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-18
Updated: 2019-10-18
Packaged: 2020-12-21 12:28:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21074900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thinkoutsidethebex/pseuds/thinkoutsidethebex
Summary: Bucky spends his first night with his girl, except he can't sleep.





	Stay With Me

**Author's Note:**

> For additional softness, I was listening to this song while I was editing and it's how I came up with the title.  
https://open.spotify.com/album/4oa8EDdG1ReAVPugI1gbER?highlight=spotify:track:1KqiNiPu9cBzxacPNNtVmx

The smell of pie baking in the oven and hot apple cider filled Bucky’s nostrils as soon as he stepped through the door. He inhaled deeply, savoring the warmth of your apartment after being stuck in the building storm outside. He shed his jacket and shoes, shaking out his rain-soaked hair before he moved further inside.

“Honey?” he called out. “Baby doll, you in here?” He made his way to the kitchen and found you, dancing at the counter and singing along to your favorite playlist. You spun around and spotted him, yelping in surprise.

“Don’t do that!” you scolded, hand on your heart. “You nearly gave me a heart attack. Jesus, you’re like a freakin ninja!”

“Sorry, doll,” he said, wrapping his arms around your shoulders. “I called out, but you were too deep in Bohemian Rhapsody to hear me.” You chuckled and leaned up to peck him on the lips.

“I was starting to get worried about you. It’s really coming down out there.” As if on cue, lightning cracked through the sky. Rain lashed harder at the windows and the wind gusted like it was trying to pull the whole building down.

“Seems like I got here just in time,” Bucky mused.

“Yeah, Thor seems pissed,” you joked. Bucky barked out a laugh and released you from his arms.

“Okay, what am I helping with?” he asked.

“No way, Barnes,” you said, shooing him out of the kitchen. “This dinner is all on me. You take this cider and go relax and let me take care of the grunt work.” He opened his mouth to protest, but you simply pointed at the living room. Chuckling at the resolution on your face, he retreated to the sofa.

“Has anyone ever told you you’re cute when you’re being stubborn?” he called over his shoulder.

“Has anyone ever told you you’re more trouble that you’re worth?” you countered.

“Everyone I’ve ever met,” he laughed. Settling in on the couch, Bucky sipped his cider and listened to the rain against the windows. The storm was getting more intense and he was already dreading the trip back home.

In the kitchen, you had resumed singing and dancing while you put the finishing touches on dinner. You spun around the island, singing slightly off key and swinging your hips. Bucky couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face as he watched you. Of all the things he expected to find in the world after the Blip, you weren’t one of them. You’d rolled into his life like the storm outside; wild and powerful, beautiful and strong. He knew from the second he’d laid eyes on you that he was in love with you, and lucky for him the feeling was mutual. You were patient with him, learning the things that triggered him and how to calm him when things got too bad. When Bucky said he wanted to take things slow you immediately agreed, knowing deep in your heart that you had the rest of your lives together.

Now, here you were having your six-month anniversary dinner on Halloween night. There had been party invites of course, but you both had decided on staying in together and avoiding the crazy New York party scene. He watched as you set the table, smiling proudly at your work.

“Bucky,” you called, breaking his trance. “Dinner’s ready, love.”

The pair of you ate happily, chatting about the things that had happened throughout the day. Bucky laughed at your jokes, even when they weren’t that good, and let himself get lost in the feeling of being this warm and happy. Outside, the storm raged and slapped rain against the windows. The lights flickered a few times, but managed to stay on.

“And the she had the audacity to say it was my fault!” you finished your story incredulously, waiting for Bucky to react. He was nervously eyeing the windows, distracted by the frequent flashes of lightning. “Buck? You ok?” He turned back to you, realizing he’d missed the end of the story.

“Huh? Sorry baby, I missed that.”

“That’s the tenth time you’ve looked out the window in the last 30 seconds,” you joked. “Am I keeping you from something?”

“What? No!” he exclaimed. “Just trying to keep an eye on the storm is all. Getting back to Brooklyn is gonna be a bitch.”

“So, stay here,” you shrugged. Bucky froze. His eyes widened and he turned to look at you. You stared back at him, a soft smile on your face. The weight of what you were asking wasn’t lost on you. Six months was a long time, and most couples at this stage of the game had had their fair share of sleepovers. But you and Bucky weren’t most couples.

Slowly, you stood up and walked over to him. He watched you nervously, almost like he was afraid. When you got close, he pushed his chair back and you settled yourself onto his lap, wrapping your arms around his neck.

“Hey,” you said softly, fingers playing with the hair at the nape of his neck. “Buck, listen. I meant it when I said I was okay with taking things slow. All this is about is me wanting you to be safe. There are zero expectations here. You can crash on the couch, or I can crash on the couch or we could-“ Bucky cut you off with a firm kiss. His arms wound around your waist and yours tightened around his neck, pulling him closer. You pulled away, brushing your thumbs across his cheeks.

“What do you say we get these dishes done and head to bed?” he asked. Smiling, you nodded and lead him back to the kitchen to clean up.

Your bedroom was exactly how Bucky had pictured it. Soft white sheets covered your bed, along with more blankets and pillows than he had ever seen in his life. He chuckled, and you shot him a look.

“That is…a lot of blankets,” he noted. You merely shrugged.

“You can never have too many comfort items,” you said. “Can you get the lights?” Bucky flipped the switch on the wall and the room was plunged into darkness.

He watched you, silhouetted by the streetlights tricking through the curtains, as you padded to the bed and tossed back the covers. You climbed in and rearranged some pillows before motioning for him to join you.

“I hope you’re ready for some top-tier cuddling, Barnes,” you joked, wiggling your eyebrows. He laughed, and moved to join you.

“Funny, I was about to say the same thing to you.” He climbed in beside you and laid back, letting you settle yourself against his chest. Arms wrapped around one another as you both relaxed together.

“Good night, Bucky,” you sighed, nuzzling your head against his chest.

“Night, baby doll,” he replied, placing a kiss on the top of your head.

Bucky tried, he really tried to fall asleep. By all accounts, he should have been able to. His girl was threaded between his arms, snoring softly, and he was exhausted from a day of training with Steve. But everything was just too _soft._ The blankets, the pillows, even the fabric of your t-shirt against his arm. Everything was just so soft and warm that he couldn’t fall asleep with all of it. He leaned down to kiss your head gently again, before he untangled himself from your arms. The storm was still beating against the windows, so going home wasn’t an option. Grabbing a pillow and one of the many blankets from your bed, Bucky settled himself on the floor.

No more than five minutes after he’d moved off the bed, he heard you stirring.

“Bucky?” you murmured, still half asleep. Before he had time to answer, you were scrambling off the bed. “Shit. Fuck!” You dove for the desk, grabbing wildly for your phone.

“Baby, what’s wrong?”

“Holy shit!” you shrieked, whipping around and dropping your phone. Bucky got up and moved to you, holding your upper arms.

“Are you ok?” His eyes roamed your face and his brow furrowed in worry.

“You scared the shit out of me!” you yelled, swatting at his chest. “Why were you on the floor?” Bucky dropped his hands from your arms and ran them through his hair. He eyes found the floor rather than your face.

“I…I couldn’t sleep,” he said sheepishly.

“I thought you left,” you whispered. His eyes snapped up and met your tear-filled ones. “I thought I pushed you too far and it was too much…”

“Oh, baby doll, no,” he said, wrapping you back in his arms. “It’s not that at all. It’s just…I spent a long time sleeping on concrete slabs or broken pallets and now I can’t really sleep on soft beds anymore. But I didn’t want to wake you, so I just moved.” You pulled back slightly and looked up at him.

“So, you’re saying my bed is _too_ comfortable for you?” you questioned. He chuckled softly and brought a hand up to cup your face.

“I think we might have too many blankets,” he teased. “There may be such a thing.” You smirked, but didn’t look away.

“And I…I didn’t scare you off?”

“Darlin, no. Not at all. I love you and I’m-“ He cut himself off and both of your eyes widened. He’d never said those words out loud before. He’d left notes around your apartment with them, and he’d sent texts and flowers with cards, but he’d never actually said them to you. You both stared at each other for a moment before you blissfully broke the silence.

“I love you, too.” Bucky smiled broadly and leaned down to softly kiss your lips.

“Get back in bed, baby,” he said. “I’ll be right here when you wake up. I’m not going anywhere.” You walked back to the bed, but rather than getting in, you grabbed a pillow and blanket and came to join him on the floor.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Sleeping?” you replied, eyebrows arched. “I figure if we start with one pillow and blanket each, we can gradually add more until you’re ready for the bed again.”

Tears pricked at the edges of Bucky’s eyes as he watched you situate yourself. Since he fell from the train, he’d never felt like he deserved love. With all the pain he’d inflicted over the years, he assumed whatever higher power was out there would never let him feel the kind of love and joy that was filling his heart at this exact moment. He never thought he would be loveable again, until he met you. Now here you were, laying on the hard floor with him rather than the soft bed only feet away. He moved to sit next to you, gently taking your face in his hands.

“I love you,” he said, stronger than the first time.

“I love you, too,” you said with a smile. He leaned in to kiss you gently, then pulled you tight to him and began kissing all over your face. Each kiss was punctuated with an “I love you” until you were giggling uncontrollably and trying to wriggle yourself out of his grip.

“Ok, ok I get it Bucky! You love me, now let me go!” You laughed and swatted playfully at his arms. He laid the two of you back and loosened his grip enough for you to wrap yourself around his torso again.

“You sure you’re not cold?” he asked.

“Mmm, you’re warm,” was your only answer. Bucky pulled you tighter to him, feeling the warmth of your body through his shirt. That night, he got the best sleep he’d had in 70 years.


End file.
